What To Do With An Old Strand Of Christmas Lights

Today I have an easy Christmas craft to show you where you can re-use that old strand of Christmas lights that you really don’t have a place for, but don’t want to throw away. Sidenote- for an easy Christmas craft to do with kids click here

My mother in law was cleaning out her mother’s house a few years ago and asked me if I wanted this OLD strand of Christmas lights…

They still worked and were in perfect condition!  The bulbs are glass and more of a medium size than the giant ones you would see today.  I really didn’t have a use for them at the time, but they were so unique looking and I knew that they really don’t make lights like this anymore so I decided to keep them and I would find some sort of use for them eventually.  So, after storing them in the bottom of my holiday decorations for a few years, I finally figured out a way to incorporate them into my holiday decor!

I saw this craft on Pinterest where someone used the bulbs from a strand of lights that didn’t work anymore to fill a vase or bowl.  Then I saw another idea where someone covered their extra bulbs in glitter!  So, I decided to combine the 2 ideas and use these bulbs to make glittered Christmas lights to add to my antique dough bowl on our new sideboard and to my centerpiece on the dining room table!

I started by removing each bulb from its socket (they unscrewed very easily) and discarded the green electrical strand.  Next, I took a small paint brush and painted the first bulb with an even layer of Mod Podge and then immediately rolled the wet Mod Podge-covered light bulb into a shallow bowl of 1/2 thick gold glitter.  ( I purchased both the Mod Podge and glitter from Hobby Lobby).  Then I held the bulb in my hand for a few minutes to allow the glitter to set and harden into the Mod Podge.  Then once I felt that the glue had dried, I laid the bulb down on newspaper and repeated these steps for each bulb.  After adding one layer of Mod Podge and glitter to each bulb, I scanned over each individual bulb to look for blank areas that needed to be refilled.  I touched up any blank areas with more Mod Podge using a tiny paint brush and then followed with glitter.  I continued this until all of the bulbs were completely and evenly covered with glitter!  Here are some pictures of the finished product…